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Coming Soon to a Beach Near You

ONE pair of scientists observed that it resembles a mop hiding beneath a dinner plate. And a famous author took license by exaggerating the threat of its sting: ''Behold the lion's mane!'' cried Sherlock Holmes as he revealed the murderer in an Arthur Conan Doyle story, declaring the jellyfish deadlier than a cobra.

But the lion's mane jellyfish, with its red bell and orange tentacles that stir both fear and awe as it gracefully pulses with the currents, is hardly the thorniest of the ocean's beautiful blossoms.

The lion's mane, the jellyfish most common along Connecticut and other East Coast shores, inflicts its most serious damage on those who are allergic to its protein-based toxins or unlucky enough to be struck in the eye by the microscopic harpoons on its flailing tentacles.

Now on its annual visit, the lion's mane (Cyanea capillata) is beginning to appear, though in small numbers, along with the sea nettle (Chrysaora quinquecirrha), a jellyfish that is sighted less frequently.

''One reason is that they are very difficult to capture and maintain alive given their soft bodies,'' said Robert Nawojchik, staff biologist at the Mystic Aquarium. ''We exhibit a couple of species of jellyfish, and we have to be very careful about how we handle them. We've had mixed success over the years with them.''

Their commercial irrelevance has contributed to the dearth of research. ''Many of our best-known species of fish and marine mammals are ones that were commercially exploited, such as salmon, where there's tons of research,'' he said.

Jellyfish season tends to arrive in midsummer, when waters warm up, so some lifeguards are baffled by the small numbers seen so far in the Long Island Sound. But, just in case, they are gearing up for a busy August. Brandt Thomas, director at the state's largest beach, at Hammonasset State Park in Madison, said the quiet jellyfish season was a stark contrast to last year, when reports of jellyfish stings numbered in the hundreds during the busiest weekends at the 2.2-mile-long beach.

''We've had a couple of storms that should have brought them in, but so far they've been nonexistent,'' Mr. Thomas said. ''I'm thankful for it. It makes it a little bit easier for everybody to bear going into the water. Honestly, though, I'm waiting to jump in the water any day and see hundreds of them.''

What is known about the lion's mane jellyfish usually seen in local waters is that they are mostly sexually mature adults that scientists trace to the ocean's deeper reaches. The adults shed their sperm and eggs, which, when joined in fertilization, form larvae that grow into tiny bottom-dwelling polyps. Those develop into what resembles a small stack of pancakes, each of which is released and forms a jellyfish.

''The metamorphosis that makes them a jellyfish is probably triggered by an elevation of water temperatures,'' said Peter Anderson, a jellyfish expert and director of the Whitney Laboratory at the University of Florida in Marineland, Fla. ''That's why you see them during the summer.''

But the numbers of jellyfish and their arrival dates are nearly impossible to predict because prevailing winds and currents dictate their movements. Experts said they could only guess why some summers bring more jellyfish than others.

''How many jellyfish are out there depends on a number of factors, such as weather patterns, temperature patterns and current patterns,'' Dr. Nawojchik said.

Jellyfish tentacles have thousands of stinging cells, or nematocysts, containing toxic threads that are triggered by chemical or physical contact. The threads then unfold and discharge like harpoons. Although lion's mane jellyfish contain toxic proteins and peptides like those in more lethal species, they cause fewer fatalities because their harpoonlike threads shoot out in a curve, slowing penetration. It's the difference between a pin prick and planting a stake. Still, lion's mane jellyfish hurt when they sting, leaving large red welts or ridged zigzag lines across the skin that mirror the path of lashing tentacles. ''Poisonous and Venomous Marine Animals of the World,'' by Bruce W. Halstead and Donovan A. Courville, classifies the stings of the genus Cyanea as ''moderate to severe.''

Scientists know more about how not to treat a jellyfish sting -- fresh water should never be applied, they advise -- than they do about a positive remedy. Arthur Goldberg, a marine toxin expert and professor of chemistry and environmental science at Southampton College on Long Island, said fresh water increases pressure in the nematocysts and induces the discharge of the threads.

Barefoot beachgoers wet from a recent shower could feel discomfort if they walk on the tentacles of some species that have washed ashore. But the stinging threads of lion's mane jellyfish are unlikely to pierce the thicker skin on soles or palms, Dr. Goldberg said, though fresh water could discharge their nematocysts and damage other tissue.

But few seem aware of the risks of fresh-water treatment, even today. The gap between science and its application on the beach remains wide.

In response to a reporter's inquiry on treatments administered by lifeguards, the waterfront director for the Town of Fairfield, George Taterosian, said he would investigate what he believed until now was the town's best method for handling jellyfish stings reported by beachgoers: an antibacterial soap rinsed with fresh water.

''The best solution is to clean it and wash it,'' Mr. Taterosian said.

Scientists also warn against contact with dead jellyfish. Although the lion's mane does not have stinging cells on its bell, said Larry Madin, senior scientist and biology chairman at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute in Woods Hole, Mass., its tentacles, shorn by the battering of surf, could be nearby and may have active stinging cells.

One preventive measure that appears to work is waterproof suntan lotion. Scientists are unclear, however, whether stinging cells do not discharge because of the absence of the necessary chemical stimulus in the lotion, or whether the lotion simply blocks the toxic threads from penetrating the skin, said Richard Mariscal, a Florida State University biology professor who specializes in marine stings.

Even more debatable than prevention are the methods to treat stings. Dr. Madin, for instance, prescribes vinegar as the best antidote to neutralize the stings of the lion's mane and sea nettle jellyfish.

Others employ alcohol to dry the wounded flesh, though reaching for a beer is taboo because of its high water content. Still others swear by meat tenderizer, which contains papain, an enzyme derived from papaya that is said to break down proteins in the toxin.

''I've heard people say that they're not sure meat tenderizer is that effective,'' Dr. Madin said. ''I've also heard people say that most of these things are placebos and if you rub sand on it, it works just as well.''

Prevention

Experts suggest a number of ways to reduce the chance of jellyfish stings: